One of today's hot political topics is some states' measures to restrict voting. What historical precedents do we have for such efforts, in the South and elsewhere? Why were/are some people concerned about this?

Answer 1

Every citizen who's 18 years old or older has the Constitutional right to vote. Yet, in the South before the Civil Rights Act, some people had to pass a literacy test in order to vote. African-Americans were actively discouraged from voting.